Gary Hardwick

Gary Hardwick was born the 10th of 12 children in a working-class family. He was raised in Detroit, where his adventures would become the foundations for his literary career.

Hardwick attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he majored in English. There, at age 19, he wrote his first novel, Dark Semester, which remains unpublished. Upon graduation, he returned to Detroit and attended Wayne State Law School. Hardwick served as Wayne State's first African-American class president.

While in law school, he began working a curious sideline to pay his bills: stand-up comedy. He performed his way through law school - amidst the likes of Tim Allen, Dave Coulier, Jay Leno, Dennis Miller, Larry Miller, Rosie O'Donnell, Bob Saget, and Jerry Seinfeld. After graduating from Wayne State, Hardwick continued performing stand-up while practicing law in Detroit and/or working for a criminal defense firm, the federal government, and various corporations.

Hardwick moved to California, where he served as an attorney for the United States Department of Justice. Later, he was selected as a Fellow at the Disney Studios, which enabled him to launch his entertainment industry career.

He began working in television, writing for such series as South Central, Where I Live, Me and the Boys, Matt Waters, and In the House. On the last-named, which starred Deliver Us from Eva leading man LL Cool J, Hardwick also was an executive producer.

Hardwick's first produced screenplay became the comedy Trippin' (directed by David Raynr). He also did (uncredited) rewrite work on Peyton Reed's Bring It On - the project on which he first collaborated with Deliver Us from Eva producer Paddy Cullen (and which starred Gabrielle Union); and Mark Brown's Two Can Play That Game, again with Cullen and Union.

Hardwick's first published novel, Cold Medina, was issued in 1996 to critical acclaim. It is the first in his series of fictional books about modern Detroit, which also includes Double Dead, (purchased for feature film adaptation by Warner Bros.) and Supreme Justice, which is currently in bookstores. Hardwick's latest novel is Color of Justice.

He is developing Marvin, an original screenplay that he will direct for MGM; and Uncle Ray, which he is scripting for Steve Harvey to star in.